Olympus SP-100 vs Sony NEX-C3

Its time to look more closely at the Olympus SP-100 and Sony NEX-C3, former being a Small Sensor Superzoom while the other is a Entry-Level Mirrorless by rivals Olympus and Sony. The sensor resolution of the SP-100 (16MP) and the NEX-C3 (16MP) is fairly well matched but the SP-100 (1/2.3") and NEX-C3 (APS-C) offer totally different sensor sizes.

Photography Glossary

The SP-100 was launched 2 years later than the NEX-C3 and that is quite a serious difference as far as tech is concerned. Each of these cameras have different body design with the Olympus SP-100 being a SLR-like (bridge) camera and the Sony NEX-C3 being a Rangefinder-style mirrorless camera.

Before we go straight to a detailed comparison, here is a short introduction of how the SP-100 grades against the NEX-C3 in the way of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Here is a sample of the gallery pictures for Olympus Stylus SP-100 & Sony Alpha NEX-C3. The complete galleries are available at Olympus SP-100 Gallery & Sony NEX-C3 Gallery.

For anyone who is looking to lug around your camera, you will want to factor its weight and size. The Olympus SP-100 has outside dimensions of 122mm x 91mm x 133mm (4.8" x 3.6" x 5.2") having a weight of 594 grams (1.31 lbs) whilst the Sony NEX-C3 has specifications of 110mm x 60mm x 33mm (4.3" x 2.4" x 1.3") with a weight of 225 grams (0.50 lbs).

Check out the Olympus SP-100 and Sony NEX-C3 in our completely new Camera plus Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Remember that, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are employing at that moment. Here is a front view sizing comparison of the SP-100 versus the NEX-C3.

Using size and weight, the portability rating of the SP-100 and NEX-C3 is 63 and 91 respectively.

In many cases, its tough to envision the gap between sensor measurements simply by looking at technical specs. The photograph here will provide you a much better sense of the sensor dimensions in the SP-100 and NEX-C3.

As you can tell, both the cameras provide the same MP but not the same sensor measurements. The SP-100 offers the tinier sensor which should make obtaining shallow DOF trickier. The more recent SP-100 is going to have an advantage with regard to sensor tech.